On Friday, Brafman entered the courthouse alone, past a phalanx of reporters and cameras. About 10 minutes later, Weinstein arrived with a trio of new lawyers.
Justice James M. Burke granted Brafman’s request to withdraw from the case after weeks of feuding with his client, and approved Weinstein’s proposed new team.
But Burke noted the potential conflicts that could arise because two of his lawyers, Jose Baez and Ronald S. Sullivan Jr., recently represented one of Weinstein’s most vocal accusers, actress Rose McGowan.
The judge pointed out to Weinstein his lawyers would face an ethical problem if the actress were called to testify against him.
Weinstein, 66, faces five charges in Manhattan, including rape and two counts of predatory sexual assault, which carries a maximum sentence of life in prison. The charges are related to one woman who accused Weinstein of raping her in a Midtown hotel and another who said he performed oral sex on her against her will in his apartment.
He has denied the allegations and has said the relationships were consensual.
McGowan has been a vocal critic of the movie producer and was one of the first women to come forward and accuse him of sexual misconduct. She said Weinstein assaulted her during a film festival in Utah in 1997, but charges were never filed. It is possible she could be called to testify about her experience to establish a pattern of behavior.
McGowan has criticized the lawyers for taking the Hollywood producer’s case, calling it an “egregious conflict of interest.”
Baez and Sullivan represented McGowan in November 2017 when she faced drug-possession charges in Virginia. She had accused Weinstein of having a hand in her arrest, saying, without evidence, that he had the drugs planted in her wallet.
This week McGowan posted on Twitter what appeared to be emails between Weinstein and his lawyer in Los Angeles, Blair Berk. The emails, from 2017, suggested the producer had meddled in the actress’s case. Their authenticity could not be independently confirmed.
Referring to McGowan, Weinstein wrote in an email to Berk, “Obviously trying to silence her.” Berk responded: “I took care of getting that arrest warrant issued against her back on February 1 just so there would be no fingerprints. Damn.”
Burke asked Weinstein if he was aware that the actress had accused him of planting cocaine in her wallet.
“Yes,” he said.
Burke then noted that the Manhattan district attorney’s office also had copies of the emails. He said that should McGowan be called to testify against Weinstein, Baez and Sullivan could not cross-examine her or use any information they learned about her during her case.
“Do you agree to permit these attorneys to represent you even with these limitations?” the judge asked.
“Yes,” Weinstein said.
After the series of questions about his new lawyers had concluded, Burke called lawyers from both sides to his bench. Brafman stepped away from the defense table and took a seat in the gallery.
Standing on the courthouse steps after the hearing had ended, Brafman wished Weinstein “the best of luck.”
The producer’s new lawyers — Baez, Sullivan and Duncan Levin, who will be his strategic adviser — stepped in front of the television cameras and reporters. A fourth lawyer expected to assist them, Pamela Robillard Mackey, was out of the country.
Baez declared that Weinstein was innocent.
“I think this case is testing the presumption of innocence,” Baez said, “and you have a man who needs to stand trial for these specific acts, and he should be entitled to the same presumption as everyone else.”
Weinstein is due back in court March 8. His trial is expected to start in May.
This article originally appeared in The New York Times.